Stolen Hearts
by dizzycrayon
Summary: In a world where demons are royalty and humans live in poverty, Kagome is an expert thief. Her next assignment just happens to be her most dangerous yet – go undercover and steal the most precious jewel from the royal demon family. Too bad she has caught the attention of a certain sexy half-demon prince who makes her question her loyalties. InuKag MirSan AU
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

* * *

Normally jobs weren't this easy.

 _I guess I shouldn't complain_ , I thought to myself as I scaled the wire fence carefully. I blew a strand of raven black hair from my face as the moonlight glinted off the sheen line of sweat on my brow.

This fence was unusually high for a residential estate, but still nothing compared to the wall I had just traversed through minutes before. The "Wall" being the one built ten years ago in order to keep the humans, like me, out of demon territory. It still made my blood boil with anger every time I thought about it; how the demons lived lavish lifestyles on this side of the Wall while the humans starved and suffered on the other side. Crossing the Wall was a big no-no for humans, but luckily that was of little importance to professionals like me. Those damn demons still hadn't discovered the tunnel I dug years ago that was now my daily ticket to Demonland. Things had changed drastically for humans since The Revolt.

Which is why I wasn't going to feel an ounce of guilt for this demon I was about to steal from.

Kagome Higurashi, World's Greatest Thief, at your service.

I couldn't suppress the tiny grunt as I pulled my upper body over the top of the fence, but luckily the estate was pitch black; either the demons were resting or off doing…I don't know, demon shit. I preferred not to think about what those heathens did in their free time. Lifting my right knee to meet the fence, I pushed the rest of myself over in a single leap and landed on the soft grass below. Still no movement from inside the house…that was a good sign. I had assumed that this place would be more heavily guarded, considering the type of, ahem, establishment it was. My eyes scanned over the enormous garden just to the left, and immediately my sense of smell was assaulted by a strong earthy fragrance.

Yep, this was definitely an illegal plant patch.

Hey, they may be heathens, but they still have rules too. And growing a plant like this, the Night Swell to be exact, was used to sedate injured patients, and in large enough doses, could even kill humans and demons alike. They were supposed to be regulated by infirmaries only, but that didn't stop others from using them for recreational purposes. I had half a mind to report this demon scumbag, but then stopped myself short and released a breathy laugh. Like demon authorities would listen to a little ol' human like me. Who wasn't supposed to be across the fence in the first place.

I dug out a strip of cloth from my satchel and held it in front of my nose, as the scent was already making me dizzy. I had to hurry. I dashed to the nearest stalk and tore at the stem with my bare hands. The purple flowers tickled the side of my arm as I uprooted them from the ground. Damn, these things were tall. I stuffed three gigantic stalks into my satchel, hoping it would be enough. As I adjusted the strap on my shoulder, a giant flame erupted on the inside of the window.

Ah, a fire demon. Wonderful.

"Who's there?" A deep voice bellowed with rage. I must have woken cranky-pants from his sleep.

My pulse quickened as I dared a look over my shoulder. I had my bow and arrow with me if this came to a fight, and the demon still hadn't noticed me yet through the tall stalks, so I had the element of surprise on my side. My hand twitched in anticipation of grabbing the bow when a ball of flame shot out through the now open window. It singed a path of earth a few inches to my right, barely missing me. It took everything I had to hold back the surprised shout from my mouth.

Aw HELL no.

I dashed back towards the fence and clambered up the chains as fast as I could, my knuckles turning white from the intense grip. Another ball of flame shot out and the demon roared its fury.

"There you are, little fly," it said to me in disgust, "I'll squash you!"

I couldn't risk a look behind me to see the demon's form, but I could tell it was huge just from the rumble of footsteps as it clambered to reach me. The air smelled like burnt coals and made my eyes water, but I focused on the task at hand. I couldn't die here. Not now.

Distracted by fear, I didn't notice that the demon had breathed its fire onto the fence and the temperature warmed immediately. The metal pulsed orange with heat and as I gripped the chains, a searing pain shot through my hands. I cried out and almost lost my grip.

"That's it," the demon cackled with joy at causing me pain, "release it now or burn your puny hands off."

I grunted, tears streaming down my cheeks, but kept climbing.

The demon snorted. "Oh, I'm going to enjoy reporting you to The Clan. They should know about this cunning little human thief."

"Not tonight, asshole."

At that point, I reached the top of the fence and swung my legs over the side to straddle the top. Luckily, the flame hadn't reached this high and the metal wasn't scorching hot on my butt. I swiftly pulled the bow from around my back and notched an arrow. It sailed true to its mark and struck the demon right in the chest. Green sluggish liquid oozed from the wound as the demon glanced down at it in shock. Now that I had a chance to see him, I noticed that he was basically the equivalent of a massive mound of snot. Gross. It roared in pain and struggled to take the arrow out of its flesh, to no avail. It was a special kind of arrow, designed to stay put inside a target until it bled to death.

The perks of knowing an alchemist.

I jumped down off from the fence with more steadiness than I felt. My hands were blistered and pulsing with pain, but I stayed to watch the demon take its last breath.

Once upon a time, I would have felt bad for it.

Once upon a time, humans and demons got along.

I shook my head and started for home.

Once upon a time, my parents had been alive until they were murdered by demons.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

"SON OF A –"

I bit back the string of insults that were about to fly out of my mouth caused by the pain I was currently experiencing.

"I told you this was going to hurt," the boy sitting across from me, Hojo, said with a roll of his eyes. I chewed my bottom lip as he carefully slathered some kind of healing ointment over my burned palms, which were now forming big ugly blisters on the skin. I repeatedly tapped the sole of my right foot against the wooden floor, a nervous habit of mine. When I glanced back at Hojo, I noticed the beginning of a smirk pulling at his lips.

Damn him. He was enjoying this.

"Having fun?" I growled, annoyed.

"Sorry, sorry," Hojo said, holding his hands up in a 'don't kill me' gesture. "I've just never seen the World's Greatest Thief squirm like this." I glared at him and he cleared his throat before asking, "What happened?"

"Fire demon," I said flatly.

"Ah," was all he replied with. No explanation needed.

"Look, are you almost done? I have things to do," I asked sharply. I knew I sounded cranky, but it was well past 2 o'clock in the morning and I was starving; thievery takes a lot out of a girl. I sometimes forgot how this person, barely an adult himself, had taken us into his home after The Revolt without question and had kept us fed and sheltered. "Us" being my little brother Sota and I. Hojo had also lost his parents during the demon invasion, but, unlike me, hadn't had his house blown up in the process. He was a talented alchemist, able to craft useful objects out of simple ingredients that had helped us survive during this new regime. Most of the ingredients, though, were located on the demon's side of the wall; an area which Hojo avoided at all costs. That's where I came in – in exchange for shelter and food, I became the alchemist's personal thief. I really should be nicer to him, but this new world just seemed to suck the positivity out of everyone.

I must have spaced out because Hojo was waving a hand in front of my face.

"Kagome?"

"Yeah?"

"I said thank you for retrieving the Night Swell for me. This will be critical for my next project."

"Uh huh," I said, absentmindedly. Hojo tore a cloth with his teeth and wrapped the strips around my palms. "What are you working on now, anyway?"

Hojo's pale cheeks flushed pink. He was pretty shy, especially when it came to his experiments. I never pried too much.

"It's…a secret," he said as he patted my hand, signaling to me that he was finished. "There's potato stew in the kitchen for you."

"Aye, aye, boss," I said as I shot to my feet with a mock salute. My stomach needed no further encouragement. I made my way to the tiny kitchen and practically salivated like a wild dog at the smell of the stew. I pulled off the heavy clay lid and stuck my finger in the liquid, and, to my luck, it was still warm. I was about to reach for a bowl when soft footsteps padded on the floor behind me. I turned and saw a little boy with scruffy hair the color of midnight.

"Sota," I said in exasperation. "What are you doing up? You should be in bed."

"I had the nightmare again, sis."

 _The_ nightmare. The one where demons invaded our childhood home in the middle of the night and murdered our parents in cold blood. Sota had only been a year old at the time but strangely remembers every detail like it was yesterday. It haunted his dreams on a regular basis. I squatted down to his level and ruffled his already bed-ridden hair affectionately.

"I'm sorry," I told him, my tone softening, "want to hang with me while I stuff my face?"

He cracked a small smile at that.

While he pulled two stools over, I spooned myself a generous portion of stew and sat next to him. I winced at the contact with my still fresh wounds.

"What happened to you?" Sota questioned, pointing to my bandaged hands.

"This?" I held my hands up in between mouthfuls of food. I shrugged. "A minor mishap on the job. No big deal." I casually brushed it off so he wouldn't worry over it. He was too young to be burdened with my problems. He raised a critical eyebrow at me.

"You're too reckless, sis. Too caught up with revenge to know what's good for you."

Well, hell. My brother may be young, but he was no fool. It was my turn to eye him critically.

"Since when did you become so grown up?"

"I'm eleven," he said with a roll of his eyes. I snorted. As if that was so old.

"Hey," I said as I changed the subject to a more pleasant one, "I'm going to the market tomorrow. Do you want a calderberry vine?"

Sota's eyes immediately brightened. Calderberries had been his favorite treat before The Revolt. I happened to know a certain shady person in the market who still managed to smuggle them over the Wall in small quantities. The price tag was expensive but, hey, I wanted to cheer him up. I would do anything for my little brother.

"Can I go with you this time?" he pleaded.

I frowned.

"You already know the answer to that, Sota."

Call it overprotective, but I never let him come with me on jobs or on any occasion that would even come close to being dangerous. There was too much bad shit in the world and I considered it a second job to keep him safe from whatever I could. And the market wasn't exactly sunshine and rainbows. He pouted.

"Fine. The red ones, then."

I grinned.

"You got it, kid."

* * *

I pulled my hood over my head.

It's not that I didn't want anyone to know I was here. I really didn't want anyone to know I was here.

A few of the regulars in town knew I dabbled in thievery, but if these crooks knew about it, they would definitely blackmail me for favors. And since most of the vendors in the market sold illegal goods from over the Wall, it was like a ticking time bomb for chaos. Anyone could decide to report anyone at any moment, and the demon authorities would show no mercy to humans. However, there seemed to be a silent agreement between us all that we did what we did to survive. The demons were the real enemy. They turned us humans into these desperate, starving creatures.

I spaced out again, because I bumped into a solid body nose-first.

I cursed softly, rubbing my nose as the stranger spun around to face me. I was about to yell at him for standing in the middle of the damn street like an idiot when I caught a glimpse of his snow-white hair. Which was very unusual for this side of the Wall. I couldn't see the upper half of the stranger's face in the red, hooded cloak he wore, but his teeth were poking out from his lips. Very sharp teeth. FANGS.

I started to panic as realization hit me. What was a demon doing here, of all places? Unannounced?

"Hey—" I started but was immediately cut off when his hand cupped my mouth. He backed me up against the brick wall of a crumbled house, shielding us from view with his muscled body. I attempted to struggle but his grip was insanely strong. Fear was quickly replaced with rage as I stood there, helpless. Everyone else went about their business, completely unaware of the demon that lurked in their midst.

"Don't tell anyone you saw me here," he growled.

In typical badass fashion, I bit the hand that had silenced me. The demon swore in surprise and released me, and I took the opportunity to move into a defensive stance.

"Who are you?" I questioned.

Now people were staring at us. Something in my tone must have alerted them to a possible threat. Demon boy's shoulders visibly tensed under his cloak. He may have been stronger than the average human, but that would mean little against an entire hoard of us teaming up together to take him down. Most of us with personal vendettas against his kind. It would not be a quick death. He seemed to make a decision.

"Damnit!" He growled again, then turned to me, "stupid woman."

And with that, he dashed away.

I stood there, a little stunned.

"Rude," I said under my breath.

A woman with scraggly brown hair dressed in rags stepped toward me hesitantly.

"Is everything okay?" she asked.

That's right. None of these people had actually seen the proof that the stranger had been a demon except me. Did I really want to cause mass panic by informing them that an unannounced demon had been here? Probably not the best idea, especially since he had left without incident. I mustered up my best sheepish expression.

"New guy. Wanted to show me his _wares_ ," I punctuated the last word with air quotes.

The woman crinkled her nose up in disgust at my joke and went back to her business. As if on cue, the others did the same and the tense atmosphere faded. I blew out a breath and continued on my way.

* * *

I locked on to my target and made quick strides to her meager little booth. She sat on the ground, legs crossed and smoking a pipe. As I approached, she glanced up with her one good eye; the other was covered with a large black patch. Her wrinkles showed her old age as she gave me a knowing smile.

"Back so soon, lass?" she quipped.

I sighed and dropped down across from her, dumping out the contents of my satchel onto the blanket we sat upon. A bit of food from Hojo's house and some small trinkets created by alchemy.

"The usual trade?" I asked.

She shrugged, and I knew that was her way of bestowing her approval. I stacked my goods in a pile to her right, then opened my satchel to grab hers; some common supplies that Hojo needed for his alchemy. When I was done, we sat together in silence.

"What have you been up to, Kaede?"

The old woman blew out a puff of smoke.

"Do ye really have an interest, or are ye just making small talk?"

I glared at her.

She laughed, and the sound was like pebbles grating against each other.

"I just had me a very interesting customer."

That immediately caught my attention. She must have been talking about demon boy.

I leaned in to whisper, "You saw too?"

"Aye," Kaede nodded. "N'er a human had hair or teeth like that."

My pulse was hammering in my throat. I briefly wondered if Kaede could hear it.

"Why was he here? What did he want?" I asked in earnest. I clutched my satchel so hard my knuckles turned white.

"The lad was searching for something," Kaede replied as she blew out another puff of smoke. "Unfortunately, our interaction got cut short. Hadn't found out what it was."

"But…an unannounced demon is a huge deal."

And it was. After The Revolt, the demons had built the Wall in order to keep our kind away permanently. They generally regarded us as trash, expendable, and were probably waiting for our imminent extinction. Occasionally, the demon authorities would visit our side of the Wall to make sure we were 'staying in line', but that was rare. We weren't a threat to them. For one to 'lower' himself so much as to mingle with humans on this side…whatever he was looking for must have been valuable. My skin prickled with unease.

"Don't ye worry yourself about it too much," Kaede said as she gave me a sympathetic look. At least I think it was sympathetic. Hard to tell with that eye patch. I sighed and moved to stand, then remembered something important.

"I almost forgot. Got any calderberries?"

She raised her one visible eyebrow at me.

"Aye. But they be at a steep price now, child."

I rolled my eyes, dug around in my bag and handed her a fistful of purple blossoms.

"Will these suffice, you old crook?" I drawled.

Her expression changed to one of surprise as she gazed at the Night Swell I held out to her. I had put one of the stalks aside for this very occasion.

"Be impressed with me later," I grinned. "I want the red ones. The best vine you've got."

* * *

I practically skipped back to Hojo's house in anticipation of giving the berries to Sota. He was going to be so happy. And that made me happy. My good mood was ruined, though, the minute I walked through the door.

Hojo glanced up at me from his desk with a somber look. I clenched the straps of my satchel and narrowed my eyes defiantly back at him.

"I don't like that look. What's going on—" My heart stopped at a sudden thought. "Sota—?"

Hojo held up a hand stiffly in denial, silencing my panic.

"Ive got a new job for you," he started slowly, "but you're not going to like it."


End file.
